Listening Beyond

Carolyn Gehr, better known as Ms. Gehr, is an Orthodox Jewish woman and teacher at a public English school in Montreal who took a stand against Bill 21 when it was proposed in 2019. Ms. Gehr shares what type of environment she fosters for her students, how she got involved in this movement, and her experience advocating for religious freedom in Quebec.

On this episode of Listening Beyond, Margo, Nathalie and Emilie chatted with David Chapman, the director at Resilience Montreal. Chapman reflects on his religious beginnings, recounts stories of his early work with Indigenous communities, discusses the difficulties of running a homeless resource in the middle of the city of Montreal, and speaks on his close relationship with the homeless community of Cabot Square.

In this episode, Daniel Pungaru and Valérie Séguin meet Nakuset, a Cree Indigenous advocate from Lac la Ronge, Saskatchewan, and the executive director of the Native Women’s Shelter of Montreal. They interview Nakuset about her practice as an advocate and about systemic racism in Quebec healthcare’s system.

Director and screenwriter Sophie Deraspe's characters inspire us with their force of will and their righteous path in the face of repression. We sat down with Deraspe to talk about her celebrated heroine Antigone and her documentary, The Anima Profile. Though she doesn’t self-describe as an activist, Sophie’s catalogue of work moves us to act for fairness, challenge the status quo and break down divisions in our own community and beyond. With generosity, she shares her process, responds to her critics and gives thoughtful advice to the next generation of artists.

In this episode, we interview Elysha Del Giusto-Enos on the intersections between activism, journalism, communications, and women’s rights. We discuss the process of creating a platform for communication and the implications this has for trying to make the world a better place. As women, we are often discouraged from speaking up and taking a stand against uncomfortable situations. Whether it’s at work, in school, or in any other setting, women have the right to feel safe and supported. Elysha’s communication campaigns and consultations over sexual violence response demonstrate the importance of working towards collective support for women, which we consider an essential aspect of activism.

Izzy Kamikaze grew up in a rural Catholic trade union household in the 1960s and spent the next five decades hellraising in and out of civil rights movements in Ireland. From the origin of the Pride marches in Ireland to the popular movement that successfully overturned the criminalization of abortion, Izzy talks about the constraints of institutionalizing activism and invites us to play “a few more wild cards” through her stories of provocative direct action.

Episode cover image by: Clodagh Boyd